Olympus PEN E-P5 Review

When Olympus introduced the original Micro Four Thirds PEN E-P1 almost 4 years ago in June 2009, it was the first mirrorless interchangeable lens camera to adopt a compact, 'rangefinder-style' body that made no pretence to look like an SLR. It also saw the company striking out in a direction it's followed ever since - designing attractive yet capable little cameras that consciously draw on its long-running film camera heritage. Indeed the SLR-style OM-D E-M5 was one of last year's biggest hits, and even pipped the 36MP full frame Nikon D800 to the title of 'Best Camera of 2012' in our reader poll.

The PEN E-P5 - the fourth model in the E-P range - continues this theme, while adding an array of updates that make it easily the most desirable PEN yet. It includes many of the features that made the E-M5 such a compelling package, such as the same 16MP MOS sensor, advanced '5-axis' in-body image stabilization (now with automatic panning detection), 9 fps continuous shooting, and tilting rear touch screen. It also inherits the refinements debuted on the PEN E-PL5, such as enhanced in-camera RAW conversion, a broad-range 'HDR bracketing' mode, and the ability to specify whether you wish to use in-lens or in-body image stabilization with Panasonic OIS lenses. On top of this it adds-in a top shutter speed of 1/8000 sec, a 'peaking' display to assist manual focus, and this year's must-have feature: built in Wi-Fi for connection to your smartphone or tablet.

One key change compared to previous E-Px models is a rearrangement of the controls - gone are the thumb roller and tiny rear dial, replaced by 'proper' front and rear dials that protrude horizontally from the top plate. The E-P5 features what Olympus calls a '2x2' dial interface: a small lever on the back of the camera switches these dials from controlling exposure parameters to changing ISO and white balance. If you don't like this arrangement, the lever can be customized to a couple of other options (described later in this review).

The E-P5 places emphasis on speed: it has a top shutter speed of 1/8000 sec, which Olympus says should help make best use of the company's F1.8 prime lenses, allowing them to be shot wide open in sunlight. This is aided by the addition of an ISO 100-equivalent 'LOW' setting, although this will likely come at the expense of some highlight clipping. The E-P5 also offers a fast startup time of just 0.5 sec, 1/320 sec sync with the built-in flash (1/250 sec with external units), autofocus tracking at 5 fps, and a fast shutter release mode with a lag of just 44ms (via a custom setting).

Additional features

In traditional Olympus fashion the E-P5 gets a few new features compared to previous models. There's a 'Super-spot AF' mode that allows extremely precise positioning of the AF point when using magnified live view, very much like the one seen on recent Panasonic models. It gains timed intervalometer shooting, along with the ability to assemble time-lapse movies in-camera. The Live Bulb mode, that allows you to monitor the progress of long exposures while the shutter is open, now features an on-screen histogram to help monitor exposure build-up. The image stabilization system is also now always active by default, to provide a stabilized live view feed (especially useful when using telephoto lenses).

The E-P5 also gets Olympus's 'Photo Story' feature that first appeared on the XZ-10 enthusiast compact. This is essentially an extension of Art Filters, allowing you to generate multi-image composites rather like the pages of a photo book, in a wide variety of themes. It may not be something enthusiast photographers will use all the time, and arguably better suited to lower-end PEN models, but it's good to see Olympus continuing to come up with new ideas.

Colour options

The E-P5 comes in three colour schemes; black, silver and white. The all-black version that we've shown in this review has a textured matte finish which we expect will be appreciated by street photographers - it looks particularly fine when coupled with the black versions of the M.Zuiko Digital 17mm 1:1.8, M.Zuiko Digital 45mm 1:1.8 and M.Zuiko Digital ED 75mm 1:1.8 lenses announced alongside. The camera also comes in a very handsome silver-and-black finish that harks back to Olympus's classic cameras from the 1960s and '70s, and a white version with a beige grip. Olympus will also be offering a limited edition model with a wooden grip, and a range of premium accessories such as leather cases.

Comments

Hi all Pen E-P5 usersI recently bought this camera with firmware 1.6 already installed.I try to customise the PASM function in the mode dial as mentioned in this review, such as assigning a MYSET to the S mode, but I can only see the Art and iAUTO mode can be assign on, there is no option to assign to the PASM.Anyone done this before?Cheers and happy shooting

I recently picked up this camera from my local bricks and mortar camera store. I will be posting a review in a few weeks after I have had time to take some photo's make some prints and do some comparisons.

So far I see no evidence of so called "shutter shock" at the relevant shutter speeds and I am not using any of the special anti-shock settings (Firmware Ver. 1.5). But then again, I never saw them on the E-pl1 either.

Something I'm curious about...In the studio scene the E-P5 seems unable to resolve the king of club's hair, something which the E-M10 does easily (and the GX-7 too), and in fact the image seems slightly soft throughout. I've not noticed this softness in other images from this camera, but since I'm trying to decide whether to buy one I'd like to know if there is any other explanation!Thanks

Well, it's good to hear Olympus got around to trying to fix this issue in the E-P5. I wonder if the same will happen for their other cameras. I got an E-PL5 around Christmas, but the image blur/shutter shock problem presented itself so frequently that I had to return the camera after a few weeks.

My E-PM2 has the most useless implementation of IS I have ever encountered. It is essential to keep it turned off to avoid dreadful double image blur. I have no idea why it's so much more pathetic than the IS of the E-PL2 (poor, but not normally harmful to sharpness except with telephoto lenses) and E-P2 (quite good at times).

My discussion with oly service in Germany lead to the fact, that they ackowledged the problem after few hours and said, they communicated it to Japan. And I guess, only continuous customer requests/complaints from various directions might motivate Olympus enough to issue an update soon counteracting this very bug. It is all about setting priorities. As long as only few people complain, oly might prefer to work on other projects, whatever the severity of the bug might be.

Interesting... But, well, the fix is annouced to be released within the next days. You certainly have the original FW 1.4. The fixed version should be FW 1.5.

Perhaps it is best just to wait now - since it has been confirmed from various sites, oly is really working an a short term fix. For the time being I activate live histogram - so that a force the camera to show the actual exposure settings.

Read the threadhttp://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/3671408 after having done so I saw that switching the histogram off I had the same problem, which indeed is frustrating! For me the workaround is having the histogram on, and wait for the 1.5

New firmware a definite improvement, particularly with the 75-300 lens, which always seemed to settle at the critical 1/160 second. However Olympus could have made the menu implementation of the anti-shock simpler and lamentable documentation of the feature much better. Thank goodness for various reviews which documented and illustrated how to implement. The menu system for this camera must be the most convoluted and obscure ever. Wilson

Unfortunately FW 1.4 untroduced a very annoying metering display bug. (see my post for description below). I would be happy if I could (!) roll back to 1.3 or even 1.2. But that seems to be impossible...

The E-P2 uses the old 1/4000 one, the same one used all the way to the E620 (possibly even older) along with the same 2-axis IBIS.

I don't know if that 1/4000 shutter was ever updated later on, but I know the E620 and E-P1 were essentially developed in parallel with many of the same parts. The E-P2 was merely a quick update to the E-P1

Part of the beauty for many who learnt to shoot with 35mm cameras and fast lenses (that includes me) - (OM10/1.8 50mm then OM4ti/1.2 50mm) was that the format was a convenient compromise that allowed for a wide range of possibilities in composition. Okay, grain boundaries were hit very quickly, but that was not a big issue. I used to have 400ASA kodak negatives published at A3 - the vagaries of the printing process for all but the most expensive publications hid a multitude of sins - 120 lpi on poor stock and cheap ink was the norm.

I now have a PEN (an old EP2, no rush to upgrade) - and it's still important to have a range of possibilities when shooting (offset litho is much better in the digital age too, so resolution and grain are important). I'd like the option of MORE VERY fast primes. Of course, I could buy a full frame camera - but I have never liked bulk and don't fancy lumping those ridiculously ugly plastic bricks about. Its all a happy compromise, as ever.

Does anybody remember Kodachrome 25? It was a very slow film that, given a decent camera, produced smooth, sharp slides, with great dynamic range. That's ISO 25 folks. The reason we all craved fast lenses was so we could use un-speckled films with greater freedom. That's the point, wide latitude to shoot. It's why we badmouth the odd camera--it takes away our freedom. On an entry level SLR, f1.8 was not thought special on the primes that were more popular than zooms. f1.4 was where cool began. So here we are, electronic sensors that take us out to ISO 1600 without much noise, and a step more with heavier noise reduction that steals a bit of detail. Typical kit zooms nowadays all start at f3.5. Yeesh. That is two stops slower than f1.8 but compensated for by the depth of the ISO on the sensor. Have it all. Get a PEN with a zoom AND that 17mm f1.8 prime. (The standard primes used to be quite inexpensive. The marketing department sticking it to us is what happened...)

On the other hand it is great fun shooting in candle light with my M240 at 3200ISO or above and f0.95 Noctilux. I still use Kodak T-Max 3200 in my M4 but film grain is somehow much more acceptable than digital noise. The reduction in the noise of sensors over the last few years increases possibilities of imaging by a lot. Wilson

... and the second issue I experrience after updating to firmware 1.4:

2) As it says, with firmware 1.4 and "0 second anti shock" active, the camera should switch to electronic first curtain at 1/320 and slower. In contrast to this, I cannot HEAR any difference between anti shock on and off and speed below and above 1/320. In any case there seem to be still 2 shutter movements. One before and one after the exposure.

Side remark: Despite of extensive testing I have never been able to find clear evidence of shutter induced blur with FW 1.2. And I don't see a clear improvement in this respect with FW 1.4 either.

I have no clue, what happened, and what the firmware REALLY does. Any Ideas or observations? Thanks, Paul

Yes, the shutter still does full cycle, only at shutter speeds 1/320s ans slower there will be a 25ms delay after first curtain opens. Sensor is then reset via electronic first curtain and the exposure ends in a regular way with mechanical 2nd curtain.I assume that 25ms difference is hard to observe by hearing.You can check this thread for details: http://www.dpreview.com/forums/thread/3648616

Thanks, Alien, for shedding light on the issue. I wonder, why Oly does not take the opportunity to communicate more clearly about it. Much of the confusion is unnecessary.Thank you also for the reference. Very interesting findings indeed!

Good God... Based on the positive assessment of dpreview I updated my E-P5 from firmware 1.2 --> 1.4Two problems now (see this and the following post):

1) It seems firmware 1.4 introduced a severe metering display bug:

The metering is FROZEN on the lcd. E.g. in "A" mode the S value is not being updated, in "S" mode the F value and in "M" mode the metering bar.An update to the actual value can only be forced by a user interaction like pressing a button on the camera, a user interaction on the lens (if that forces a display update like changing the focal length or bringing up the magnified view when changing the focus) or if the "live histogram" display is active.

BTW: I like the new wifi remote control much more than the first implementation and ironically the metering update works on the smartphone app - but not on the camera itself - the former one being a nice-to-have, the latter one a must-have.

Hi Michael, Thank you for confirming the issue on your side. When I realized what happened with my camera I couldn't believe Olympus has released a FW introducing such a massive bug. So I doubted my camera probably has an individual issue... Probably the issue arises due to updating directly from FW 1.2 to 1.4? Was that what you did as well?

Just had a telephone conversation with Olympus Service Europe and they claim, did not hear of any issue with FW 1.4 advicing me to reset the camera and if that doesn't help to send my E-P5 in for repair... Next FW update? Unknown if any. This is frustrating. It could be key to actively communicate the issue to the oly service department so that the issue gets priority. What do you think?

I updated 2 h ago. When I set to A mode the S value is live when I move the camera - and so on in the other modes. It counts both for the display and the VF 4, which I had mounted during the update. Did I misunderstand something?

So you are lucky! Are you using live histogram or x/y bars? Both seem to force continuous display updates? Or is it due to the fact you are using VF 4, which I don't have? Perhaps we can learn from your configuration and find a workaround until a bugfix is available!

It would be nice if ratings were totally objective, yes. Even when a consistent attempt is made for objectivity, small mistakes are made because there is a need for subtle snobbery felt as a means of asserting a high ground that is appealing to readers, the currency of credibility and an assurance to the like-minded that you haven't lost yours. The bit about PROS and CONS is one of the places where these biases get traction. Each statement gets equal weight regardless of merit. Now as far as the PEN goes. I had one, but it got stolen, and I am thinking about getting another... It does seems that the hard points on the camera map are the DSLR and Pocket Camera, and that everything in between seems not so quite well established, like there is a period of experimentation whilst the jury is out. There are some great answers and the PEN is one of them. There is a market and ALL the camera companies are running a business, so it should not be a surprise that polemics are a part of the game.

Thanks for reviewing the E-P5 again. Although I don't agree with the results. Your gold award is not granted because of the inflation of the camera within the year. That's fine, but if you compare the camera with the A6000 comparison.... I can clearly see blurred backgrounds because of the shuttershock or other issues as well. Even the A7r flagship is having trouble with this issue it seems.... Can somebody explain this, or do I see things blurred :-)Btw, my PEN rocks....

My dream camera is one that doesn't have this problem from the start. This problem existed on my OMD EM5 and cost me quite a number of great shots, one of the many reasons I sold the camera (besides paint coming off after a few weeks, the well documented screen crack issue, etc). I understand manufacturers make mistakes, but to me it's simply unacceptable they didn't notice this when performing QA/QC on their products - I wonder if they knew about the problem but figured the blame would rest with user error.

Nice job Olympus ? Really ? How about offering a replacement for what I see as a manufacturing defect.

It is still unclear to me whether the OM-D E-M10 or the Pen E-P2 and others so far not addressed with this fix will get or should have this type of fix. DP Review's assurances on this isssue being fixed as far as the M10 is concerned are conditioned quite rightly (in their review) by the phrase 'in our testing'. And not a thing from C.Nishino on the subject or anyone else at Olympus (see below). As an owner of both the M10 and E-P2 and a string of micro 4/3 lenses I would like to know if my faith in the system and specifically Olympus has been misplaced. Once again this loyal and long term customer waits for a positive and constructive response.

To peevee1, "As far as I understand, E-M10 uses the same shutter as E-M5, with slower curtains." Apparently there is a firmware upgrade (due on the 21st May I believe) for the E-M10 that will also add the 0 sec. Anti-Shock setting, so for E-M5 users this would be welcome too but I'm not sure if this will happen at some point in time.

You want to know if they can fix a mechanical issue? I believe they have made a reasonable result within the firmware for this situation that appears to be a very usable fix. You can't do that to fix for oil splatters on sensors by another camera maker. There is no perfect camera & most have to bring some sort of firmware upgrade to get around some issues & sometimes it's a physical issue that may need attention. At least Olympus replaced my display bezel with a tiny insignificant crack (from a slightly over tightened screw) on the E-M5.

Agreed. This is something that should have been caught in the testing department at Olympus. It is going bit far using the word "THE" on the testing department presumed for DPreview and Imaging Resource because that would mean that Olympus has NO testing department. It is true, A flaw was detected AFTER the camera shipped. Nikon has been replacing whole cameras with dust spots on sensors without admitting there was a problem. For them it involved an unpublished design change and a quick change to a different model number to give everybody something else to think about than focus on something Nikon missed.

Mistakes and problems occur. When computers are involved, a problem is called an "issue" to mask the seriousness of the problem. The problem with problems is that, unlike issues, sometimes there is no solution, short of redesigning or replacing the product.

The unfortunate thing is that this issue was found on the E-P1 five years ago. Olympus has had five years to solve this problem. Here's the very detailed report on the "Olympus E-P1 Blur issue" as reported by Imaging Resources.

To be honest, shutter shock, and mirror shock have been problems with a lot of cameras, even before digital. The tiny size of the mirrorless cameras are making the problem worse, and as you can see, companies are slowly dealing with the issue.

Once shutters go away completely it will be a moot issue. The transition phase is however, unpleasant. I have an E-P5 and with the update and VERY happy with it.

Personally, I do not think I am kind of a "Grammar Nazi". But I think that good communication between people starts with speaking the same language. And "same" implies "correct" because bad English is not equivalent to good English. English is not my mother tongue but I always try to do my best to detect and correct my own typos... Doing so is just being respectful of my readers...

Hmm. Calling someone a "Grammar Nazi" doesn't give the impression that "DPR are always appreciative.....etc".Also, I would have thought it would be "Spelling Nazi". Maybe that makes me "Logic Nazi" and/or a "Courtesy Nazi".

Can't attest to the EP5 but on the EM1 it works perfectly. It can also be used in continuous shooting but the anti-shock setting needs to be set to 1/8 second or longer for either of the two continuous settings (with the little diamond next to it) to be available in the drive menu.

Hello,A friend of mine is willing to buy my PEN E-PL5. I'm not sure if buy E-PL5 again or go to this beauty with the extra cost.I have 17mm f1.8 and 45mm f1.8 lenses.My wife will love photo story and wifi connection for her whats app groups (she does not have facebook) will it work straigthforeward?is it worth the change?Thanks

On my E-P5, focus peaking seems to work with dedicated m4/3 lenses only, not with mf lenses that are attached via an adapter (zeiss zf.2 lens and metabones speed booster). Does focus peaking require electronic coupling between camera and lens??

I absolutely LOVE my E-P5. Just an amazing camera. (Mine is in for repair right now as the main dial was not changing info on every click...). I have no shutter shock issue that I can find, tho. Tested in all the modes, shutter speeds with MANY lenses...cannot observe the phenomenon. I believe this may be a manufacturing or a batch issue....many posters here are not having the issue (but I do believe there is an issue.)I think Olympus needs to be responsible to its loyal customers and issue a statement (or fix?), regarding this situation and also the shearing off of the lens mounts on the new 12-40mm Pro lens. BOTH of these situations are widely documented on the web...especially this open discussion about the shutter shock issue here throughout DPR's review of the camera. C'mon Olympus...step up!

Hi, I have noticed my E-P5 front dial is starting to only sometimes change settings, or do its job, sometimes it does nothing. I googled it and this comment of yours came up first. What country are you in, and has Olympus given you any trouble over this warranty repair? Have you heard if it is a common problem with the dials going bad? p.s. I haven't seen any shutter shock either. I wonder if it is more common for users who don't use a viewfinder.

Page 14 of the review (Image Options) explains this: However, rather than offering the OM-D's handy in-viewfinder tone curve diagram, the P5 requires you to press the exposure compensation button, then the INFO button, then use the left and right buttons to adjust the shadow response. Pressing INFO again changes attention to the highlight portion of the curve. But first, make sure that you have dedicated one of the camera's buttons to exposure compensation. I think that is the default function of the Fn button, but you can set this in menu-> detailed camera options -> B: Button/Dial/Lever. I agree with DPReview that setting the tone curves while processing your RAW files is a more elegant solution.

I am still struggeling. The camera was at Olympus for the second time. They changed the complete CCD unit this time. But the issue is still there. Sometimes I shoot 10 to 20 pictures without any fault. Then out of the next 10 pictures 5 are completely blurred. All with the same lens and settings (17mm 1.8) Sometimes I can even see on the screen that the picture will be blurred. The camera focusses, I get the green focus frame and light in the upper right corner, confirming focus (set to focus priority of course), I hear the IBIS working as usual, but the picture is not sharp. The performance of the IBIS is generally poor compared to my EM5 or EM1. With the 17mm I need a minimum of a 1/20 to get a decent sharp picture.Check these pictures, the were shot in a sequence within a few minutes:

Any news from the shuttershock issue cameras? I own the camera for 3 months now, but I don't have a telelens. Till 60mm I don't have the shuttershock issue when using the right technique of making images.... that has to be said. That was a lot easier with my nikon D600 and D800 ;-)But on the other hand, try to make a nice shot with the D800 and the 105mm macro attached! With a shutter speed of 80-160 it will be quite difficult to make a sharp image. And have you tried it with a 600mm handheld? No chance @ all of making a sharp image with shutter speed 80 or so.I'm getting used to the EP-5 now, and to be honest I like it more and more! 4 lenses (9-18, 45 and 60mm) Waiting for the ply 2.8 telezoom ;-)

Have used the EP5 for a couple of months now and have not experience the shutter shock issue some users have reported. I even set the camera on Shutter speed priority and set it on 1/80s and can not produce the blur that some users have reported. I am wondering if the issue reported may be batch dependent?

Having had the E-P5 for three months, I've re-read your review and make the following 2 comments. (1)Your review states you used the IS Auto setting for the stabilizer. That setting is for Landscape Panning. eg Panorama mode. For the photos in your examples, the general IS-1 would be appropriate. If your problem is vertical use IS-2. If horizontal use IS-3. (2) When I turn on my machine and press OK the focal length 15mm is shown at the bottom right of the screen. (The last length I entered.) If I mount a Sigma 30mm, 30mm appears at the top right of the screen. The stabilizer setting remains at 15mm. Which is why I change the stabilizer setting the match the lens. I don't suppose this would be relevant, unless pixel peeking is practiced, but if the stabilizer automatically recognizes a native lens, why does the recorded stabilizer setting not change automatically?

The stabilizer focal length setting will always show the last focal length that was manually set. When using a native lens though you should notice that the FL in the bottom right corner is grayed out meaning it's not being used. It only becomes active (white) when using a non native lens.

3 weeks with 3- and 5-axis stabilisation on my SH-50 convince me of its necessity - and the P5 has 5-axis stabilisation. So I read the review. Double exposures at 1/80 second and thereabouts are indeed worrying. Are you sure that is not caused by Parkinsons? The stabilisation should take care of any roller blind shutter slap. The first of the sample videos is plain over-exposed (not uncommon in that kind of setting). The second sample has no bass in the sound (when compared to my SH-50 videos), suggesting the wind shield setting was at its highest. I get the impression the reviewer does not like video anyway. The level of customisation possible is stupendous indeed, yet the P5 does not look as knob-encrusted as my SP-570UZ.

a request by TN ARGS a month ago for any updates by DPreview is mothballing... anyone official statement?

There's no statement from Oly Singapore as of today after my communication with them but so far the I've tried at least 4 sets of the Pen but i've not experienced the said shutter shock issue. I really hope to see the phenomenon (yes, in a warped sense)

Here is what I got back from Olympus support:"I also saw your second email with the sample images, thank you for sending these samples. Please note that as mentioned on the DPreview article you referenced, this type of problem is not considered a mechanical defect of the camera, and in most case is due to vibration introduced by pressing the shutter button or vibration coming from other moving mechanisms of the camera. This can also vary by many other factors, such as lens used and way of holding the camera. To reach higher levels of sharpness in critical situations, the 'Anti Shock' function available in the Menu that can help reduce this blur. If you feel strongly, even after using the anti shock function and tripod, that there may be something else wrong with your camera, we encourage you to send this in to our service center for testing, and possible repair or adjustments. For instructions on how to send this item to the Olympus service center"